Beach Reads
By Jennifer James Davenport
We wait all year for summer, that long stretch of sun-soaked days when the beach becomes our favorite place to unwind. For me, part of that anticipation is building the perfect reading list, the stack of books that somehow feel made for salty air and sandy toes. There’s something about a good beach read that hits differently under the sun. Here are a few titles I’ve been saving, or eagerly waiting to be released, so I can finally dive into them this summer.
“The Correspondent” by Virginia Evans
Sybil Van Antwerp has spent much of her life turning to letters as a way to understand both the world around her and her place within it. Nearly every morning, she settles in to write, to her brother and closest friend, to a university official denying her the chance to sit in on a class, even to authors with her candid thoughts on their work. And then there is one letter in particular, the one she returns to again and again, but never quite sends. Having lived many lives, mother, grandmother, wife, divorcee, and accomplished lawyer, Sybil assumes things will continue on as they always have. But when a correspondence from her past resurfaces, it forces her to confront a deeply painful chapter she has long kept at arm’s length. In doing so, she begins to realize that the unsent letter she’s been revisiting for years may be the key to finally moving forward, if she can bring herself to let go and forgive. What may seem like a quiet, modest life on the surface reveals itself to be something much more profound, and Sybil emerges as a character who lingers in your mind well after the final page.
“Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett
In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return home to their family’s cherry orchard in Northerna Michigan, where long days of work spark an unexpected kind of storytelling. As they pick fruit together, they press their mother to finally share the story of Peter Duke, a now-famous actor she once knew intimately during her time with a small theater company called Tom Lake. What begins as a look back at a youthful romance unfolds into something deeper, as Lara’s memories prompt her daughters to reflect on their own lives and to see their mother, and their family history, in a new light. “Tom Lake” is, at its heart, a quiet exploration of love in its many forms: the intensity of youth, the steadiness of marriage, and the unseen lives parents lead before their children ever know them.
“Funny Story” by Emily Henry
Daphne used to love the way her fiancé Peter told their love story, from their windswept first meeting to the small, charming details that made it feel like something out of a novel. But that version of the story comes to an abrupt end when Peter realizes he’s actually in love with his childhood best friend, Petra. Now, Daphne finds herself starting over in Waning Bay, Mich., far from home, short on money, and clinging to a children’s librarian job that isn’t quite enough to keep her afloat. In a twist she never could have predicted, she ends up sharing a place with Miles Nowak, Petra’s ex, who might be the only person who truly understands the mess they’ve both been left in. Miles is messy, impulsive, and comforted by sad love songs, while Daphne is reserved, practical, and something of a mystery even to her coworkers. At first, they keep their distance, but a shared sense of heartbreak slowly gives way to an unlikely friendship, and eventually, a plan to stage a carefree, picture-perfect summer for the benefit of social media. Of course, what starts as a harmless distraction begins to feel a little more real than either of them expected, raising the question of whether this “new chapter” might turn into something neither of them saw coming.
“The Midnight Train” by Matt Haig
In “The Midnight Train,” Matt Haig returns to the idea of revisiting life’s defining moments, asking a simple but unsettling question: If you could go back, where would you linger – and what would you change? The novel follows Wilbur, a man haunted by the choices that led him away from the life he once cherished, particularly the time he spent with Maggie, the great love he can’t seem to let go of. Through the mysterious Midnight Train, Wilbur is given the chance to step back into those moments, to relive them, reexamine them, and perhaps understand himself more clearly. But as he moves through his past, it becomes clear that revisiting old memories isn’t as simple as nostalgia; each choice carries weight, and the temptation to rewrite the past comes with real consequences.
“When You Loved Me” by Beatriz Williams
On Winthrop Island, rumors of a buried pirate treasure have long surrounded Windward, the aging Cooper estate, though Lucy Cooper has never believed the story, especially given how it helped fracture her family. When she returns home with her daughter after her father’s death, she finds the estate in financial trouble and an unexpected face from her past waiting: Ben Ressler. Thirteen years earlier, a single summer changed everything. Lucy’s brief, complicated romance with Ben, a football star whom her best friend also loved, left lasting damage. Now back on the island after a career-ending injury, Ben is also the last person to see Lucy’s father alive. As Lucy investigates her father’s final days, she uncovers his research into a centuries-old pirate legend. What begins as a search for answers becomes something more personal, a chance to confront the past and reconsider what it means to move forward. Blending history, mystery, and romance, the novel weaves together past and present into a story about loss, forgiveness, and second chances.
“The Shampoo Effect” by Jenny Jackson
When Caroline Lash arrives in the coastal town of Greenhead, Mass., she quickly falls for Van Whittaker, an easygoing, outdoorsy local who’s deeply rooted in the place and the people he grew up with. Through Van, Caroline is pulled into his tight-knit circle of longtime friends, including his magnetic ex-girlfriend Bailey, along with Augusta and Fran, each bringing their own history and dynamic to the group. Life in Greenhead moves with a familiar rhythm, sun-soaked days by the water, late nights, and a sense of closeness that feels both inviting and, at times, insular. But when Bailey reveals she’s pregnant with Van’s child, the group’s fragile balance begins to unravel. Caroline suddenly finds herself on the outside, and her reaction, driven by heartbreak and anger, sets off a chain of events that exposes buried tensions and unsettles the entire community.
